About the Secretary

Steven Terner Mnuchin was sworn in as the 77th Secretary of the Treasury on February 13, 2017. As Secretary, Mr. Mnuchin is responsible for the U.S. Treasury, whose mission is to maintain a strong economy, foster economic growth, and create job opportunities by promoting the conditions that enable prosperity at home and abroad.

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Statement from the Treasury Department on the President’s Decision Regarding Ralls Corporation

9/28/2012

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WASHINGTON – As chair of
the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), the U.S.
Department of the Treasury today issued the following statement about the
President’s decision regarding Ralls Corporation:

The
President issued an order prohibiting the acquisition and ownership of four
wind farm project companies by Ralls Corporation, its owners, its subsidiaries,
and its affiliates. The order directs Ralls Corporation to divest its
interest in the wind farm project companies that it acquired earlier this year,
and to take other actions related to the divestment. Ralls Corporation is
owned by Chinese nationals, and is affiliated with a Chinese construction
equipment company that manufactures wind turbines. The wind farm sites
are all within or in the vicinity of restricted air space at Naval Weapons
Systems Training Facility Boardman in Oregon.

The
President took this action pursuant to section 721 of the Defense Production
Act of 1950, as amended by the Foreign Investment and National Security Act of
2007 (“section 721”). Section 721 authorizes the President to suspend or
prohibit certain acquisitions of U.S. businesses by foreign persons where he
finds that there is credible evidence that the foreign interest exercising
control might take action that threatens to impair national security, and where
provisions of law other than section 721 and the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act do not provide adequate and appropriate authority to
protect national security in the matter under review.

The
President’s action demonstrates the Administration’s commitment to protecting
national security while maintaining the United States’ longstanding policy on
open investment. The President exercises his authority under section 721
with a focus on national security concerns and is committed to ensuring the
fair and equitable treatment of all foreign investors. The Administration
will continue to ensure that the United States remains the most attractive
place for businesses to locate, invest, grow, and create jobs. The President’s
decision is specific to this transaction and is not a precedent with regard to
any other foreign direct investment from China or any other country.

The
President’s decision took into consideration the factors described in subsection
721(f), as appropriate, and the recommendation by the Committee on Foreign
Investment in the United States (“CFIUS”) that he issue an order prohibiting
this transaction. CFIUS is an interagency committee whose purpose is to
review transactions that could result in the control of a U.S. business by a
foreign person in order to determine the effect of such transactions on the
national security of the United States. In assessing the transaction’s
impact on national security, CFIUS conducted both a 30-day, first-stage review,
and an additional 45-day, second-stage investigation. CFIUS’s detailed
analysis took into account all relevant national security factors, including
those elements enumerated in section 721. CFIUS also received a thorough
analysis of the threat posed by this transaction from the Office of the
Director of National Intelligence, as required by section 721.

CFIUS
is chaired by the Secretary of the Treasury and includes as members the
Secretaries of State, Defense, Commerce, Energy, and Homeland Security, the
Attorney General, the Director of the White House Office of Science and
Technology Policy, and the U.S. Trade Representative. The Director of
National Intelligence and the Secretary of Labor participate as non-voting, ex-officio
members.